Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!

I think I'd hack off all that plaster/filler to the point where you can see the holes in the air brick. Then clean out the first couple of centimetres of each hole and fill with silicon sealant. Then plaster over it .

On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

Is there still an air brick on the outside of the house or has that been
filled in as well

Perhaps when filling in the air brick the cavity has been breached
giving a path for moisture to travel from the outside wall to the inside
wall. Is you house built with cavity walls or is it solid brick?

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:


The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

Is the photo after the bleach treatment?

Don't overlook that the filled in airbrick may not be the problem. You
may have a leaking roof or gutter above your wardrobe causing the
problems on the ceiling and/or walls. Water then could be running down
inside a wall cavity until it reaches the porous air brick fill and then
is coming back to the inside of the wall. The fill material may be
acting as a sponge with no brick or block behind the surface coat to
stop water penetrating.

Check for any cracked tiles or slates above the area or any water
staining on the exterior wall in the location. Check that your gutters
are not blocked with leaves or moss in that location which could cause
water to overflow the gutter.

If its a filled in air brick where is the water coming from
i) condensation?
ii) a hole in the outside of the wall that hasn't been blocked off?
iii) from the roof
iv) from the gutter

Perhaps the original purpose of the air brick was to prevent
condensation occurring?



--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On 17/12/2020 22:12:48, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice
and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30
years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick
inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I
had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled
fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my
enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my
clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here.
https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from
the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the
plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion
of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the
upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with
bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how
I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I
couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its
ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this
flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs
room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up
with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips
would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products
especially. Thanks!

Clearly one or more of those walls is an outside wall. It is therefore
going to be colder than the room so condensation will form on these walls.

Given the passage of time, apart from the refilling of the airbrick, you
need ventilation between the room and wardrobe. I would suggest a series
of holes in the bottom and top of the wardrobe between that and the bedroom.

I find this a little odd. You need air bricks to stop condensation in this
house, but I guess diverting it to the main room with a duct cannot be
done?
Brian

--

This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Monique Castellani-Kraan" wrote in message
...
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need
to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years,
and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my
build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad
clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed
wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe
and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the
inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster
has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth
that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of
my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of
stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I
use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until
it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous
location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up
for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room.
Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair
cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly
appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!

On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!

I would have thought your problem would get worse without the air brick
.......

--
I like Aeroplane jelly ... It's Aeroplane jelly for me....

On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice
and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30
years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick
inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I
had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled
fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my
enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my
clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here.
https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

Looking at that picture I am more concerned with the corner ceiling
which looks to be the source of the walls dampness. I think the air
brick is a symptom and not a cause. Although the previous attempt to
fill it may have bridged the inner and outer walls leading to problems.

Which direction does the offending wall face? Into the prevailing wind?

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its
ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this
flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

I'm not sure that opening the air brick might not at least partially
solve the problem by allowing some exchange of air with the outside.

The way that the steel bracket has rusted suggests that the entire wall
is damp and the inside of the wardrobe too. The edges of the impermeable
air brick are merely acting to focus the dampness.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On Thursday, 17 December 2020 at 22:12:50 UTC, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!

Some years ago, I lived in a house which was massively over-supplied with similarly position air vents. The excess air flow, especially cold, wet air in winter, made what was otherwise a very dry and reasonably warm house feel cold and unpleasant.

One room was particularly bad and, as were switching things round, using it as a home office meant it was occupied much of the day. So the cold air was far more important.

As a strictly temporary measure, I bashed a bit of Celotex into the hole on the inside leaf. Covered with a bit of plasterboard - just pushed in place.. Then slapped on some sort of plaster-based filler (I really cannot remember what it was). Made an acceptably smooth and flat finish - sufficiently good that our eyes were not drawn to it.

Some time later, as that had worked well, I did the second air vent in that room. Followed by three others over the next year or two. All using much the same technique.

Given the relatively poor fit of the double-glazed windows, there was still plenty of airflow but the improvement was huge.

Around ten years after doing the first one, we moved on. All air vents still filled adequately, untouched other than redecorating.

But you have got a ceiling problem. And, I suspect, condensation. Is the attic insulated properly? Is there rain ingress?

On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 10:00:20 AM UTC, polygonum_on_google wrote:
On Thursday, 17 December 2020 at 22:12:50 UTC, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!
Some years ago, I lived in a house which was massively over-supplied with similarly position air vents. The excess air flow, especially cold, wet air in winter, made what was otherwise a very dry and reasonably warm house feel cold and unpleasant.

One room was particularly bad and, as were switching things round, using it as a home office meant it was occupied much of the day. So the cold air was far more important.

As a strictly temporary measure, I bashed a bit of Celotex into the hole on the inside leaf. Covered with a bit of plasterboard - just pushed in place. Then slapped on some sort of plaster-based filler (I really cannot remember what it was). Made an acceptably smooth and flat finish - sufficiently good that our eyes were not drawn to it.

Some time later, as that had worked well, I did the second air vent in that room. Followed by three others over the next year or two. All using much the same technique.

Given the relatively poor fit of the double-glazed windows, there was still plenty of airflow but the improvement was huge.

Around ten years after doing the first one, we moved on. All air vents still filled adequately, untouched other than redecorating.

But you have got a ceiling problem. And, I suspect, condensation. Is the attic insulated properly? Is there rain ingress?

No leaky roof as far as I know, we did recently have the roofers round for maintenance. Had a leaky bay window that needed the lead flashing repairing.. I am wondering if Alan is right and condensation is the cause - we have had an awful problem with it in the house in recent years and ended up needing a dehumidifier.

The mold first started round the vent then travelled upwards to the ceiling (the photos are after I bleached the everloving hell out of it). Thing is, this air brick has been blocked up for over 30 years. Only in the last 5 or 6 years or so has that mold problem appeared. The wall is north-facing and it's solid brick. Yeah diverting air into the room cannot be done sadly, not without tearing off the wardrobe doors or ripping out the panelling anyway. Don't have the tools for it either.

The air brick is untouched on the outside of the house. The vent isn't metal it's brick, what you can see in the photos is the brick showing through underneath the plaster.

I posted around on other forums last night too, I've been given so much conflicting advice by this point I'm just confused. xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up. So I'm looking into removing all that plaster and getting an adjustable vent cover for it instead, we'll see how it goes from there. If problems with it persist I'll block it up Just a bit concerned that it's going to ruin my clothes and books inside that wardrobe if I open it up which is why my first concern was sealing it up properly.

Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate your help!

On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

I posted around on other forums last night too, I've been given so much conflicting advice by this point I'm just confused.

Possibly because its hard to diagnose the problem from a distance and
there could be more than one possible cause for the damp. Some people
may assume one cause and one solution whilst other may assume a
different cause and suggest a different solution.


xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up. So
I'm looking into removing all that plaster and getting an adjustable
vent cover for it instead, we'll see how it goes from there. If problems
with it persist I'll block it up Just a bit concerned that it's going
to ruin my clothes and books inside that wardrobe if I open it up which
is why my first concern was sealing it up properly.

If the problem hasn't been evident for the previous X years what may
have changed? Could it be that what has been stored in the area has
been packed in so tightly against the wall and ceiling that it is
trapping the water in the wall/ceiling. Perhaps in the past a gap
between the wall and stored material allowed any minor dampness to
evaporate to atmosphere?


Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate your help!


If you do open it up and put an adjustable vent on the inside place a
thin sheet of open cell foam behind the vent. Often open cell foam
(usually black in colour) can be found in the packing of household
electrical items but also available on Ebay etc. This will help stop a
gale blowing trough the airbrick when the wind is in the wrong direction.






--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 11:46:56 AM UTC, alan_m wrote:
On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

I posted around on other forums last night too, I've been given so much conflicting advice by this point I'm just confused.
Possibly because its hard to diagnose the problem from a distance and
there could be more than one possible cause for the damp. Some people
may assume one cause and one solution whilst other may assume a
different cause and suggest a different solution.
xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up. So
I'm looking into removing all that plaster and getting an adjustable
vent cover for it instead, we'll see how it goes from there. If problems
with it persist I'll block it up Just a bit concerned that it's going
to ruin my clothes and books inside that wardrobe if I open it up which
is why my first concern was sealing it up properly.
If the problem hasn't been evident for the previous X years what may
have changed? Could it be that what has been stored in the area has
been packed in so tightly against the wall and ceiling that it is
trapping the water in the wall/ceiling. Perhaps in the past a gap
between the wall and stored material allowed any minor dampness to
evaporate to atmosphere?

Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate your help!

If you do open it up and put an adjustable vent on the inside place a
thin sheet of open cell foam behind the vent. Often open cell foam
(usually black in colour) can be found in the packing of household
electrical items but also available on Ebay etc. This will help stop a
gale blowing trough the airbrick when the wind is in the wrong direction.
--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
I'm just confused. xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up.

Ther are two methods of controlling condensation - one is high airflow
of low humidity air plus heating = airbricks and heaters and energy, and
the other is to simply cover the cold wall in an insulator, so it isn't
a cold *surface* any more.

I had a kitchen built out of single 4.5" brick with an outside wall.

Cork tiles solved the condensation completely


--
Karl Marx said religion is the opium of the people.
But Marxism is the crack cocaine.

On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 11:46:56 AM UTC, alan_m wrote:
On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

I posted around on other forums last night too, I've been given so much conflicting advice by this point I'm just confused.
Possibly because its hard to diagnose the problem from a distance and
there could be more than one possible cause for the damp. Some people
may assume one cause and one solution whilst other may assume a
different cause and suggest a different solution.
xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up. So
I'm looking into removing all that plaster and getting an adjustable
vent cover for it instead, we'll see how it goes from there. If problems
with it persist I'll block it up Just a bit concerned that it's going
to ruin my clothes and books inside that wardrobe if I open it up which
is why my first concern was sealing it up properly.
If the problem hasn't been evident for the previous X years what may
have changed? Could it be that what has been stored in the area has
been packed in so tightly against the wall and ceiling that it is
trapping the water in the wall/ceiling. Perhaps in the past a gap
between the wall and stored material allowed any minor dampness to
evaporate to atmosphere?

Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate your help!

If you do open it up and put an adjustable vent on the inside place a
thin sheet of open cell foam behind the vent. Often open cell foam
(usually black in colour) can be found in the packing of household
electrical items but also available on Ebay etc. This will help stop a
gale blowing trough the airbrick when the wind is in the wrong direction.
--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Fill it all up and cover the wall with plasterboard and celotex dot and
dabbed in place.

https://www.roofingsuperstore.co.uk/...mm-x-22mm.html

--
Labour - a bunch of rich people convincing poor people to vote for rich
people by telling poor people that "other" rich people are the reason
they are poor.

Peter Thompson

On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30 years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom. Photos here. https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially. Thanks!


1940's could mean it might or might not have cavity walls. That could
make quite a difference in what remedial work is needed.

On 18/12/2020 12:16:35, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 11:46:56 AM UTC, alan_m wrote:
On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

I posted around on other forums last night too, I've been given so
much conflicting advice by this point I'm just confused.
Possibly because its hard to diagnose the problem from a distance and
there could be more than one possible cause for the damp. Some people
may assume one cause and one solution whilst other may assume a
different cause and suggest a different solution.
xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up. So
I'm looking into removing all that plaster and getting an adjustable
vent cover for it instead, we'll see how it goes from there. If problems
with it persist I'll block it up Just a bit concerned that it's going
to ruin my clothes and books inside that wardrobe if I open it up which
is why my first concern was sealing it up properly.
If the problem hasn't been evident for the previous X years what may
have changed? Could it be that what has been stored in the area has
been packed in so tightly against the wall and ceiling that it is
trapping the water in the wall/ceiling. Perhaps in the past a gap
between the wall and stored material allowed any minor dampness to
evaporate to atmosphere?

Thanks for the advice everyone, I really appreciate your help!

If you do open it up and put an adjustable vent on the inside place a
thin sheet of open cell foam behind the vent. Often open cell foam
(usually black in colour) can be found in the packing of household
electrical items but also available on Ebay etc. This will help stop a
gale blowing trough the airbrick when the wind is in the wrong
direction.
--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely
rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any
advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Have you considered a positive move to Windows?

The photo shows discoloured painted wallpaper on the ceiling and
discolouration at the blocked up vent.

Fill it all up and cover the wall with plasterboard and celotex dot and
dabbed in place.

It may solve the problem but seems overkill and not easy task in a built
in wardrobe.

https://www.roofingsuperstore.co.uk/...mm-x-22mm.html

I suspect the floor of this house is unheated from being unoccupied.
That, a wardrobe on a cold corner and a lack of ventilation are the more
likely culprits.

In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 11:46:56 AM UTC, alan_m wrote:
advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

A rusty cast iron job.

Fill it all up and cover the wall with plasterboard and celotex dot and
dabbed in place.

https://www.roofingsuperstore.co.uk/...ine-basic-tape
red-edge-wallboard-1200mm-x-2400mm-x-22mm.html

Vents part way up walls here have been installed to meet draught
regulations for chimney vented gas fires. Sleeved so there is no
intended link to any wall cavity.

ISTR mention of this now being used as a bedroom. Clearly changes have
been made and it might aid advice if more were known about the building
history.

The wardrobe/cupboard appears to be a later addition perhaps due to a
change of use.

My experience of fitting a wardrobe to an insulated modern cavity wall
is DON'T DO IT!

Black mould at high level on walls is an indication of too much
atmospheric moisture, too little room ventilation and insufficient heat
input.




--
Tim Lamb

On 18/12/2020 12:16, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:


Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Something is wrong with your setup. I have no problem seeing the picture
using Pale Moon 28.16.0 or Firefox 84.0 (Linux Mint 20.0 x64).

--

Jeff

On 18/12/2020 12:10, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
I'm just confused. xD Some people saying block it up some people saying open it up.

Ther are two methods of controlling condensation - one is high airflow
of low humidity air plus heating = airbricks and heaters and energy, and
the other is to simply cover the cold wall in an insulator, so it isn't
a cold *surface* any more.

Or a dehumidifier. But your first method or a dehumidifier will cost
money every time they are in use.

I had a kitchen built out of single 4.5" brick with an outside wall.

Cork tiles solved the condensation completely

Don't they make the kitchen a bit on the dark side? I assume they can be
painted, but could they be tiled over instead?
--

Jeff

On 18/12/2020 01:31, Fredxx wrote:
On 17/12/2020 22:12:48, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice
and need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30
years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick
inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I
had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled
fusty.



Clearly one or more of those walls is an outside wall. It is therefore
going to be colder than the room so condensation will form on these walls.

Given the passage of time, apart from the refilling of the airbrick, you
need ventilation between the room and wardrobe. I would suggest a series
of holes in the bottom and top of the wardrobe between that and the
bedroom.


And install cavity wall insulation if practicable.
And visit a pet centre and get one of those big spray cans
intended for dealing with cat fleas inside the house. You can
spray around the walls and floor inside the wardrobe and even
give clothing you don't wear all summer/winter a quick spray
too. This should deal with clothes moths.

On 18/12/2020 08:38, Jim GM4DHJ ... wrote:
On 17/12/2020 22:12, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
Hi all, could use some input on this because I'm a bit of a novice and
need to make sure I'm using the right tools for the job!

Our house was built in the 1940s and we've lived there for almost 30
years, and little did we know there was a badly filled-in air brick
inside my build-in clothes wardrobe. In recent years I wondered why I
had such a bad clothes moth problem and why my clothes smelled fusty.

The air brick is 6 ft above the floorboards, directly inside my
enclosed wardrobe. It is in a contained space consisting of only my
clothes wardrobe and bookcase inside my bedroom.Â* Photos here.
https://imgur.com/a/KCKaehO

It seems the previous people did a bodge job and filled it in from the
inside using only plaster filler, so of course over the years the
plaster has deteriorated and crumbled - and has now had an explosion
of mould growth that spread all over the walls and ceiling in the
upper storage section of my wardrobe. Had to absolutely blitz it with
bleach and throw a load of stuff away. (and for anyone wondering how I
didn't notice for so long - I use the upper level for storage so I
couldn't see what was happening until it was too late)

So needless to say this air brick needs filling in because of its
ridiculous location. Now the question is what do I use to seal this
flipping thing up for good so that this doesn't happen again?

It would have to be sealed from the inside as this is an upstairs
room. Would it be feasible to scape off all the old stuff, seal it up
with repair cement, then re-plaster and paint? Any help and tips would
be greatly appreciated. Brands and recommended products especially.
Thanks!

I would have thought your problem would get worse without the air brick
......


If this is a North facing and uninsulated wall then the only
solution is insulation (that doesn't cause interstitial
condensation).

On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
No leaky roof as far as I know, we did recently have the roofers round for maintenance. Had a leaky bay window that needed the lead flashing repairing. I am wondering if Alan is right and condensation is the cause - we have had an awful problem with it in the house in recent years and ended up needing a dehumidifier.

You only get a 'roofer' in if you know you have a problem. Out of 20
jobbing 'roofers' yo will be lucky to get just 1 that is any good.

Bay windows with flat roofs are notorious for leaks and condensation.

If you need a dehumidifier full time then that suggests a more serious
problem.

What sort of heating do you have ?.
Do you use showers or take baths ?.
Do you do a lot of cooking ?
Do you use a tumble drier indoors without a vent kit ?.
Does the property have cavity walls that are uninsulated ?.
How much insulation is in the loft ?
Are you in an exposed area as defined by building regs ? (i.e.
somewhere on the west and south coasts with more driving rain).
Does the property have cavity walls or solid walls ?.

Fredxx wrote:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Have you considered a positive move to Windows?

Can't see it being a Linux issue, it's just
html/css/js/svg/jpg/png/webp, all of which should be implemented in a
cross-platform browser, more likely something being ad-blocked that
breaks it, imgur seems one of the less objectionable hosting sites.

If you need a dehumidifier full time then that suggests a more serious
problem.

owt much we can do about it at the moment sadly. we only need it running 1-2 hrs in the mornings though, and the humidity has massively improved

What sort of heating do you have ?.
Do you use showers or take baths ?.
Do you do a lot of cooking ?
Do you use a tumble drier indoors without a vent kit ?.
Does the property have cavity walls that are uninsulated ?.
How much insulation is in the loft ?
Are you in an exposed area as defined by building regs ? (i.e.
somewhere on the west and south coasts with more driving rain).
Does the property have cavity walls or solid walls ?.

-we have a combi boiler system heating the rads
-mainly showers, sometimes baths. Shower is in downstairs extension bath upstairs on opposite side of house to this bedroom. Shower room has its own fan vent and we keep door closed. I think the bigger issue with condensation is inside our old secondary glazing in 3 of our windows downstairs (the rest are double glazed). But again not much we can do about it for the the foreseeable future besides opening windows, wiping down and running the dehumidifier. Kind of running on a shoestring out of necessity atm.
-we cook about as much as a normal household would? :P and we have a cooker hood fan that is always turned on when cooking.
-don't have a drier. But we do dry our clothes indoors most of the time.
-no idea about the cavity walls tbh. As far as I can tell we have decent insulation, house traps warmth pretty well.
-We're in Cheshire, there's 90-95% humidity in our area pretty much the whole year. It's rain central here.

Never been in the loft myself, no idea what's up there. Don't even have a ladder for it. A little scared of what I'll find lol! But given several people have said to check the roof & loft for leaks, I'll have a look up there as soon as I'm able to. As you guys have said there doesn't appear to be moisture inside the plaster itself... so unlikely the vent is the issue even though it's rusted through. For now I think I will just reinsulate the gap and reseal with plaster, and will look into the roof again. Would painting over the rust be a bad idea? (sorry if it's a dumb question lol)

Not able to afford any major refittings at the moment so going to see if I can get spacers or something to allow airflow between the wardrobe and the room whilst still keeping it (mostly) closed so my cats don't terrorise my storage haha.

Again thanks for this guys, really really appreciate the help. You've been brilliant.

On 18/12/2020 15:25:51, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

snip

But we do dry our
clothes indoors most of the time.

This will dump a whole of water in the house. If you do have to dry
clothes indoors consider a condensing tumble drier.

-no idea about the cavity walls tbh. As far as I can tell we have
decent insulation, house traps warmth pretty well. We're in
Cheshire, there's 90-95% humidity in our area pretty much the whole
year. It's rain central here.

As soon as you warm cold air it's RH plummets.

Never been in the loft myself, no idea what's up there. Don't even
have a ladder for it. A little scared of what I'll find lol! But
given several people have said to check the roof & loft for leaks,
I'll have a look up there as soon as I'm able to. As you guys have
said there doesn't appear to be moisture inside the plaster itself...
so unlikely the vent is the issue even though it's rusted through.
For now I think I will just reinsulate the gap and reseal with
plaster, and will look into the roof again. Would painting over the
rust be a bad idea? (sorry if it's a dumb question lol)

I would use a phosphate paint or other rust treatment. However the rust
will eventually resurface.

Not able to afford any major refittings at the moment so going to see
if I can get spacers or something to allow airflow between the
wardrobe and the room whilst still keeping it (mostly) closed so my
cats don't terrorise my storage haha.

Ventilation will assist greatly.

Again thanks for this guys, really really appreciate the help. You've
been brilliant.

In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
On Friday, December 18, 2020 at 11:46:56 AM UTC, alan_m wrote:
advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Get a better version of Linux - it works here albeit slow to load (Opera
browser)on a 1.5mbps download speed.

Andy Burns wrote:
Fredxx wrote:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Have you considered a positive move to Windows?

Can't see it being a Linux issue, it's just
html/css/js/svg/jpg/png/webp, all of which should be implemented in a
cross-platform browser, more likely something being ad-blocked that
breaks it, imgur seems one of the less objectionable hosting sites.

In Ubuntu, a Firefox 75 and a Firefox 83 could view the picture.

Many other combos, gave the usual Imgur black screen and
if you're lucky, a "Done" in the status bar at the bottom.

I tested with a browser that passed the Youtube HTML5 test,
and that browser still failed. So there's got to be some
other reason. Maybe it's plain old useragent testing, but
they seem to wait an awfully long time before preventing
you from viewing. It doesn't reject you out of hand,
it gets all the way through the loading process, before
throwing a wobbly. Because sometimes you get a glimpse
of the rusty vent, before the browser window goes black.

Paul

On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:


Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5




Has there always been a wardrobe there? What was the room use for
originally?


--
djc

(–€Ì¿Ä¹Ì¯–€Ì¿ Ì¿)
No low-hanging fruit, just a lot of small berries up a tall tree.

On 18/12/2020 14:30, Andy Burns wrote:
Fredxx wrote:

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:

https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Have you considered a positive move to Windows?

Can't see it being a Linux issue, it's just
html/css/js/svg/jpg/png/webp, all of which should be implemented in a
cross-platform browser, more likely something being ad-blocked that
breaks it, imgur seems one of the less objectionable hosting sites.

No problem viewing here with Linux Mint

--
djc

(–€Ì¿Ä¹Ì¯–€Ì¿ Ì¿)
No low-hanging fruit, just a lot of small berries up a tall tree.

On 18/12/2020 13:10, Jeff Layman wrote:
On 18/12/2020 12:16, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/12/2020 11:56, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:


Just removed the plaster to reveal (dun dun dun)... an extremely
rusty, ancient metal vent cover. Unsure how to proceed here. Any
advice? Photo: https://imgur.com/a/duJgrK5

Photo as usual unviewable on Linux.

Something is wrong with your setup. I have no problem seeing the picture
using Pale Moon 28.16.0 or Firefox 84.0 (Linux Mint 20.0 x64).


That's what I have...

--
Gun Control: The law that ensures that only criminals have guns.

On 18/12/2020 13:15, Jeff Layman wrote:
On 18/12/2020 12:10, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/12/2020 10:36, Monique Castellani-Kraan wrote:
I'm just confused. xD Some people saying block it up some people
saying open it up.

Ther are two methods of controlling condensation - one is high airflow
of low humidity air plus heating = airbricks and heaters and energy, and
the other is to simply cover the cold wall in an insulator, so it isn't
a cold *surface* any more.

Or a dehumidifier. But your first method or a dehumidifier will cost
money every time they are in use.

I had a kitchen built out of single 4.5" brick with an outside wall.

Cork tiles solved the condensation completely

Don't they make the kitchen a bit on the dark side? I assume they can be
painted, but could they be tiled over instead?

Honestly I cant remember . It was only in the outside wall


Â*--

Jeff


--
Gun Control: The law that ensures that only criminals have guns.